This is a full performance review of the Spyderco Stretch in VG-10, 5/8" Manila rope, Cardboard and wood used as testing media. The edge was reprofiled to 30 degrees inclusive and finished with a 400 grit SIC Congress stone then stropped to remove the burr. The edge wasn't touched once the testing process started.
First was the 5/8" Manila rope, 60 slicing cuts were made through the rope and the edge was checked for issues and sharpness, no issues noted and the edge still sliced printer paper easy.
Next up was the Cardboard, two large boxes were cut up to check for edge wear and durability, the knife did well with no noticeable issues. Notice the toothy working edge that VG-10 developed and it would still slice through printer paper cleanly.
Last was the wood, thick and thin slices were made to check to edge stability and strength, the edge held up well as did sharpness, it would slice through printer paper cleanly.
Conclusion and finial thoughts:
The knife did very well overall and the VG-10 steel performed as expected with the edge finish that I put on it. It's a very aggressive cutter and holds an edge very well, performance is around the same as S30V. No hot spots were noticed and the knife was comfortable to use, no blade play was noticed before or after the testing. The Stretch in VG-10 is a very good knife that should serve well for various tasks as needed, should be an excellent EDC type knife.
I've also had great luck with VG10, though i wouldn't go as far as saying it's as good as S30V...CLOSE, but just a tad less working edge in the long run. It's still a great steel especially because after all that it's pretty easy to sharpen.
Evil D wrote:I've also had great luck with VG10, though i wouldn't go as far as saying it's as good as S30V...CLOSE, but just a tad less working edge in the long run. It's still a great steel especially because after all that it's pretty easy to sharpen.
Yeah, with a coarse edge it does much better than with a polished edge, some steels like VG-10 and N690 just don't seem to as well with highly refined edges as steels like S30V will.
I did take it all the way up to 6000 grit on the EP just to see and the same thing happened, the rope made pretty short work of the edge, but change the edge finish to a coarser grit and it does much better.
That's just my observation of some of the steels and polished edges.
Ankerson wrote:Yeah, with a coarse edge it does much better than with a polished edge, some steels like VG-10 and N690 just don't seem to as well with highly refined edges as steels like S30V will.
I did take it all the way up to 6000 grit on the EP just to see and the same thing happened, the rope made pretty short work of the edge, but change the edge finish to a coarser grit and it does much better.
That's just my observation of some of the steels and polished edges.
When comparing the VG-10 to the ZDP-189 version what have you found in terms of retaining sharpness? Is the ZDP-189 steel orders of magnitude better?
Thanks,
Jeff
Oh, ZDP-189 will hold an edge a lot longer than VG-10, but it will take longer to sharpen also so it will depend on what the use of the knife will be. You may or may not really notice much difference depending on actual use.
This is why I like VG-10. I run 20 degrees per side sharpened to 600 grit congress and I touch up with the 302UF benchstone. (basically 600 grit polished?). Seems to hold an edge for a long time.
